Author Notes:Let's be honest -- short ribs are great in any incarnation. I wanted to use them in a ragu that had a little more oomph than the typical braise so I went into umami overdrive with porcini mushrooms, Worcestershire sauce and anchovy paste. It's great over polenta or pasta, but maybe even better as leftovers in a po-boy. - Minimally Invasive —Minimally Invasive

Food52 Review: This is a hearty, earthy ragu that we’re confident would be just as satisfying over pasta as it is over polenta. The mushrooms, which get pureed with the rest of the sauce once the short ribs are fall-apart-tender, make the liquid cloaking the shredded short ribs nice and meaty, and the wine, anchovy, tomato paste and mustard make it sing. Gremolata is an nice, bright touch at the end. On a frosty winter evening, this would be perfect with a big, green salad and the other half of that bottle of red wine. – A&M —The Editors

Season ribs well with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large, heavy pot (I used a 5-qt. enameled cast iron dutch oven) over medium heat until shimmering. Brown ribs in batches for 2-3 minutes per side, then set aside. Pour out all but 1 tablespoon of accumulated fat from pot, then sauté onion, carrots and celery until soft. Add garlic and stir until fragrant.

Create a hot spot in the pot by moving vegetables aside and leaving about a 3-inch radius bare. Add tomato paste and anchovy paste to the hot spot and stir vigorously until caramelized, then stir into the vegetables. Add red wine to deglaze and cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add tomatoes, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, mushrooms and soaking liquid (minus the last 1/4 inch to keep sediment out of your dish), plus herbs.

Add ribs to pot and fill with chicken stock or water until ribs are nearly covered. Bring liquid to a boil, then cover tightly and braise in oven for at least 3 hours or until ribs are fall-apart tender.

Remove ribs from liquid and set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove bay leaves and discard. While ribs cool, purée the braising liquid with an immersion blender until thick and set over medium-low heat to reduce if the sauce seems thin. When ribs have cooled down, discard bones and large pieces of fat, then shred the beef and return it to the pot. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature, skimming any large pools of fat from the surface.

Refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove additional fat from the surface before reheating. Serve over polenta, sprinkled with gremolata.

Gremolata

1
large clove garlic, minced

1
large lemon, zest only

1/4
cup parsley, finely chopped

1/2
teaspoon salt

1
teaspoon olive oil

Mix ingredients in a small bowl and let sit at room temperature for an hour before serving.

Just looked over the recipe again, though haven't made it yet (a future must do!). There are tons of flavor elements in the recipe, so doesn't look like the elimination of mushrooms would be a fatal flaw -- may not even be noticeable. Personally, I think it would be delicious even without mushrooms.

Sorry to hear about the allergy, Footnotes! One thing I love about braises is that they're so tweak-able. The recipe already already includes so umami-rich ingredients that I'll bet it would be fine without.

Oh that's a great question! I know I am allergic to those button mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms but I haven't explored much beyond yet. I used to do this amazing mixed mushroom reduction for topping steak and the like with. And that mix, being such a concentrated mushroom punch, was how I finally narrowed down the latest addition to the allergy catalogue. I really should try to narrow it down.

For those who've made this...I'm making this for 4 people. I hate not having enough food for people, but feel like this recipe makes a LOT of ribs and I'm over having lots of leftovers post-Thanksgiving. Do you think if I halve it, it will be enough for everyone to have plenty of food?

great recipe!! congrats!! i have done it with mashed potato. it works great as well. the braising liquid was very thick and more of a very chopped vegetable blend rather than sauce. next time, i'll try to strain the sauce out & pour it over the serving dish plate.

The anchovy taste is not even remotely discernible, honestly. Try it with to confirm for yourself -- and there's no need whatsoever to reveal the secret ingredient. My husband is NOT a fan of 'chovies and he was none the wiser about their addition!

Thanks, MI. If I cook every day and all day for the rest of my life, I will not begin to tap what I have said. I hope it's passion as opposed to obsession. Hopefully I will remember your recipe during the cold, cold winter. Sometimes it even gets down to 50ish, more or less.

Don't know why I missed this the first time. Haven't tried it, but looks fabulous. Can't wait. Probably the fall, since AZ is a tad warm at the moment. Will someone send me a reminder, in case it gets lost in my several life time supply of recipes?

Thanks for a great recipe - to be brutally honest - completely ran out of time so threw all the main ingredients un-sauteed into the slow cooker and flipped it on for 6 hours. I am sure your version is better and look forward to making the effort - but in the meantime - we have one terrific dinner and that was EASY.

I used double the carrots, celery and garlic and an already-opened bottle of Pinot. I couldn't find fire roasted whole tomatoes so used f.r. diced instead. I used a large sprig of fresh thyme (leaves are stripped during the braise so just remove when pulling out the bay), unintentionally left out the oregano and used low sodium beef broth. Refrigerated the pot overnight, leaving (6#) short ribs whole, per prior suggestions, so fat removal was easier. Left the ragu a bit chunky, shredded the meat and kept it separate so I could bring the sauce to a simmer before adding the meat back in (thereby avoiding dried out meat) which worked like a charm. It was FABULOUS as a main course for 7 people. Will happily add this into the winter rotation. The anchovy & tomato paste caramelization really ups the ante, don't skip that step. Was tempted to skip the gremolata but, per suggestions, went ahead and made it. I'm so glad I did; it really added a brightness that cut through the rich ragu -- and the pop of color was visually pleasing, to boot!

Just made this tonight and it was amazing! I used a Rioja wine that we had opened the night before and paired it with an older, slightly bigger Pinot from Failla (if you can ever call a Pinot big!). I didn't wind up chilling and serving later and it seemed just right. This meal would be great as a weeknight meal OR for a larger, fancier dinner party.

Made this and the family absolutely loved it. We served it with mashed potatoes and then rice both combinations where great. My question is what kind of red wine do you use? I am no wine expert so I ended up using Marsala red wine, is there one you recommend?

You didn't do anything wrong. I've tried to update the recipe repeatedly to take that into account — chill and skim first, then blend — but I'm unable to. I repeat it in the comments from time to time in hopes people will see it. I'm sorry it's too rich for your taste now.

It's better if you let it rest overnight, but there's no reason you can't eat it the same day you make it. Just be sure to skim the fat before you blend the sauce, either way — refrigerating it makes that easier to do.

good god this is a good recipe. I made it last night for the second time (actually it's the second time since my girlfriend made it for me last year). I can't get over how good it is...the sauce has the perfect consistency for a ragu after blending it all together, and the umami-ness is off the charts thanks to the anchovies and porcinis. this recipe is now a staple in my recipe book.

What's the most successful crunchy green salad to serve alongside this recipe -- one that's presentational enough for a dinner party? Would arugula with balsamic vinaigrette and pine nuts too sharp? Thanks for any ideas!

I have a question about step 6 on the recipe "Short Rib Ragu" from Minimally Invasive. It says:
"Refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove additional fat from the surface before reheating. Serve over polenta, sprinkled with gremolata."